Towns Where It’s Always Christmas

For some people, it's not enough to celebrate just 12 days of Christmas—they want 12 months. In festively named places like North Pole, Santa Claus, and Noel, you can have a jolly ol' time all year long.

For some people, it's not enough to celebrate just 12 days of Christmas—they want 12 months. In these festively named towns, you can have a jolly ol' time all year long.

North Pole, Alaska

Even though this quaint Alaskan town is 1,700 miles south of the true North Pole, its post office floods with tens of thousands of letters addressed to Santa Claus each year. But hey, if you're going to name your streets Santa Claus Lane, St. Nicholas Drive, and Holiday Road, who wouldn't think this is the real Kris Kringle's home?

Christmas, Florida

Once named Fort Christmas after an army stockade built in the area in 1837, the town now takes pride in its yuletide affiliation. Christmas's post office is decorated year-round for the holidays with a tree in the lobby.

Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

A star shines 12 months a year over Bethlehem. But it's not what you'd expect. The 81-foot-wide star was built on South Mountain in 1937 to twinkle over the former Rust Belt city, which was founded Christmas Eve, 1741. It was seen as a beacon of hope during the Great Depression.

Santa Claus, Indiana

If it wasn't for the United States Postal Service, there would be another Santa Fe. Town members were denied their initial bid to share the name with the capital of New Mexico, so they came up with a more jolly title. Nearly 160 years later, they are home to the only post office in the world that bears the name Santa Claus.

North Pole, New York

It should come as no surprise that in North Pole, Santa's Workshop is the No. 1 attraction. But it's no wonderland factory, it's billed as the country's oldest theme park, and it opened nearly 63 years ago.

Noel, Missouri

Eight decades ago, the postmaster of Noel proposed the idea of encouraging people around the country to letters through Noel so they could receive the town's special “Christmas City” postmark. Today, the city stamps thousands of letters before sending them off again to bring Christmas cheer to their addressees.

Christmasville, Tennessee

Though the town may be small, it has its fair share of Christmas stories. Rumor has it that in 1820 a young man said to his lover, “This place looks like Christmas year-round,” and suggested it be named as such. His lover responded, “Christmasville or Christmasburg would be even better.” Two centuries later, the community still refers to their home as "the Christmas place."